Scripture reference: 1 Sam. Ch 1-4
The days of Eli are passing
and the light of heaven has already begun to shine on
the days of a Samuel & David generation.
Some prophets will weep, for the
old order is passing away to make room for a new day
birthed in the heart of God. The Spirit of Samuel has
been birthed in the Hannah – like travail of
intercession. This travail has been misunderstood by
some but the result is the birthing of a new generation
– so young, yet born with ears to hear the voice of God.
The Samuel anointing brings
correction & balance to the church. Eli’s sons have
ruled long enough. What was hidden in darkness will be
brought to light and there will be no hiding from the
spirit of God.
The order of Eli will fall backward
as the righteousness of God leaps forward.
The neck of Eli will be broken –
The Lord will sever the power of the rule of the
intellect in favor of the rule of the heart within His
Church.
The Samuels are ready. They were
nurtured in the Holy Place of God’s presence. They have
walked side by side with Eli, but they are not of the
spirit of Eli. The Spirit of Samuel will arise
within the hearts of many and they will govern in
the power and authority of the Lord. The Samuel
anointing will mature to become a father’s anointing and
it will bring healing to the land.
*The “Spirit of Samuel” is a Holy Spirit anointing after
the order of Samuel
A Note
from Mark Acuna, February 2009
When the Lord first spoke this word to my heart,
I felt as if we were in the beginning stages of the release of a
Samuel generation. In the first chapters of First Samuel,
Hannah, whose name means favored (from the Hebrew root: to
implore), is a picture of the today’s intercessors. Like
Hannah, our intercessors have been misunderstood and even
rebuked in their prayers (“Eli thought she was drunk 1:14).
But through perseverance and in spite of mocking (1:7) the
intercessors have birthed a new generation with a pure heart
that follows after God. And just like Hannah brought a robe for
Samuel year after year (2:19), today’s intercessors have been
covering a generation with prayers and watching them grow.
Samuel grew up in the House of the Lord under the
supervision of Eli the High Priest. Although, Samuel grew under
Eli, he is not of the spirit of Eli. Eli had two sons, Hophni
and Phinehas, whom the Bible calls “sons of Belial” (2:12).
They were evil beyond description and filled with greed and
lust. They corrupted God’s holy priesthood and treated the holy
things of God with contempt. Eli was too weak of backbone to
stop his son’s sinful ways and God sent a prophet to ask him,
“Why do you honor your sons more than me?” (2:29)
Eli and his sons are a picture of the modern
American church. Just as Eli was fat and weak and dim of vision
(3:2) In the same way we have fattened ourselves with the
blessings of God, using what was meant to bless others for
ourselves. Meanwhile, the widow, the orphan and the poor are
forgotten. Enriched by our greed we have lost humility and have
become proud – to proud to listen to God or to follow Him. We
favor our own human wisdom and intellect and justify our sins.
The name Hopni comes from the Hebrew word for “fists,” and the
name Phinehas comes from the root words “hiss of a serpent.”
This describes well the quarrelling, bickering, gossiping,
whispering, and malice seen within the church walls. And to our
shame, the secret sins of the church are now broadcast on the
evening news and on the covers of the newspapers. How many
church congregations have been split and crippled by scandal.
But God says, “The sons
of Eli have ruled long enough!!!”
Through the mouth of two prophets, including
Samuel, God spoke judgment upon the house of Eli. And on the
same day, the Ark of God was lost, the sons of Eli were slain,
and Eli himself when he heard the news fell backward, (4:18)
broke his neck, and died. The way Eli died, paints a picture
for us of what the heart of God is in our day. God wants
nothing of the spirit of Eli and his sons to be passed to the
next generation. The old order has fallen backward (it will not
be carried forward). The neck is the division between the head
and the heart. God is severing the “head” that has ruled His
church for too long in favor of the ‘heart”. The head
symbolizes the intellect of man, our human wisdom, man’s plans,
and man’s ways and traditions. The heart symbolizes
relationship with God, intimacy with Abba Father, and one who’s
own heart responds to the heart of God.
The Lord said, “I will raise up for myself a
faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my
heart and mind.” (2:35)
God chose Samuel. The Bible says, “Samuel grew
up in the presence of the Lord.” (2:21) He grew up beside Eli,
but he had a different heart and spirit. In our day God is
raising up a generation who’s heart yearns for the true presence
of God; a generation with ears to hear what the Spirit is saying
to the churches. God has called a generation of young men and
women who hate sin and hypocrisy and who want to follow God with
passion and obedience.
God is not passing the baton of the old order to
this Samuel generation. What God is doing today in this
generation is birthed from His heart and will be a marked
contrast to “business as usual” Christianity. Many in the
church will mourn the passing of Eli, and will even try to
resurrect the old ways, for that is all they have ever known.
For a season Eli and Samuel will dwell in the same house side by
side. But soon Samuel will emerge to his calling. When this
Samuel anointing has matured, it will bring the Father’s heart
and healing to the church and to the land. The widow, the
orphan, and the poor will no longer be forgotten.
Today, I feel we are farther along in the release
of the Samuel generation than we were 5 years ago when this
prophetic word was first given. Today, the picture I get in my
heart is a picture of Samuel standing in a doorway with one foot
on the threshold and hands on both lintels of the door. Samuel
is looking to the horizon and a new day is dawning. Soon he
will step out of the house of Eli and walk forward to his
destiny as a prophetic generation. God will be the guide of
this generation, but they will need godly mentors. They are
throwing off the robe of Hannah they have now outgrown, to
replace it with a mantle of anointing from God. This mantle
still fits too big on their shoulders, the Samuels will need
mentors, godly men & women who know the heart of God. These
mentors will need to lay aside the traditions and methods of the
old order. We must not mold this new generation after
ourselves! Instead, we are to come beside them to encourage and
support. We will ask, “What are you hearing from God?” And our
response to the answer will always be the same: Say to the
Lord, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”
On the day the Samuels go forth, the praying
Hannah’s will say as Hannah of old: “My heart rejoices in the
Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over
my enemies for I delight in your deliverance…those who were
hungry, hunger no more…He raises the poor from the dust and
lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes
and has them inherit a throne of honor.” (2:1-10)
Keep praying for the Samuels. And if one happens
to cross your path, come beside him or her to mentor and
encourage as Barnabas mentored Paul. Send the Samuels out with
prayer and financial support and whey they return, bind up their
wounds, love them, and send them out again.
Mark Acuna – The Apostolic Network of the West,
Astoria, Oregon
